Devices are known in the art for moving a vehicle into a position which facilitates its repair or servicing. An example of such a prior art vehicle tilting apparatus is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,966,517 (Tune).
In prior art apparatus, the vehicle is positioned over a pair of support plates. After tilting of the vehicle to its desired position, it is necessary to move the support plates out of position to give the mechanic or repair man the ability to work on the vehicle. It has been found that the lifting procedure sometimes places forces on the support plate which makes it very difficult to unlock the support plates and move them out of position.
The present invention is directed to an improved vehicle tilting apparatus which includes an over center locking assembly for the support plates or support platforms which allows the operator to easily move the support plates or platforms away from the bottom of the vehicle.